TikTok and Chinese parent ByteDance on Thursday decided a US court to strike down a law they say will block the famous short app in the United States on Jan 19, stating the US administration refused to engage in any serious settlement talks after 2022.
Legislation agreed in April by President Joe Biden provides ByteDance until Jan 19 of next year to divest TikTok’s US assets or face a block on the app utilized by 170 million Americans. ByteDance expresses a divestiture is “not possible technologically, commercially, or lawfully.”
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia will carry oral suggestions on lawsuits filed by TikTok and ByteDance along with TikTok consumers on Sept 16. TikTok’s future in the United States may rest on the result of the case which could affect how the US administration uses its unique authority to clamp down on foreign-owned applications.
“This thing is a radical departure from this nation’s tradition of championing an open Internet, and sets a harmful precedent permitting the political branches to target a disfavored speech place and force it to sell or be shut down,” ByteDance and TikTok argue in facing the court to strike down the law.